Letters

A solution for all

This letter was addressed to the mayor and
council. A copy was forwarded to Pique for publication.

As recent articles in the local papers confirm, the
municipality is currently in the throes of “clamping down on local homeowners”
that have non
-
conforming space
developed
in their homes
.
In
my
review
of
these
recent reports, it would appear as though the municipality has decided to
allocate substantial resources to
address
this problematic situation. I
certainly support bringing this matter to a successful resolution as I believe
that the current situation presents a substantial safety issue
within
many Whistler
properties.
When development occurs without proper inspections via
the building permit process, safety systems may get sidestepped, and once a
property has work done without a permit, it will forever be off the municipal
radar as further work typically avoids the permitting process due to fear of
being found out. This only exacerbates the situation.

Unfortunately, the municipality of Whistler is
faced with the unenviable position of playing police in a situation where
success is almost certainly unattainable.
I wonder what the dollar
value is of all the resources dedicated thus far toward “closing those
loopholes” over the years, with municipal inspections, bylaw enforcement,
litigation, registering of covenants, and the countless hours of preparation
for those proceedings.

One recent analysis of the current housing stock in
Whistler
peg
s the percentage of properties with “non-conforming
space” in the neighbourhood of 8
0 per cent
(
c
ourtesy of the
Association of Whistler Realtors
)
.
While it’s
typically the large luxury homes that carry the brunt of the negative
publicity, the reality is that the vast majority of upstanding, law
-
abiding citizens
in Whistler live in a property that is non-conforming.
Think of
the old timer in Emerald with the rental suite, and the property owners (long
time locals) that rely on that rental income to meet their mortgage each month.
This is also the reality of non-conforming space. Does the municipality relish
taking that homeowner to task? Even if the resources were available, I would
suggest the lawmakers would be remiss in their duty to the public if those
resources were deployed in such a fashion as to address all of the
non-conforming space in Whistler. Are we to turn a blind eye to some while
confronting the one’s that make a good story?